Scheduling Catheterization to determine surgery

[Lorimacm]

Well I just met with new cardiologist and was very happy with the meeting. Although he is not convinced surgery should be performed soon, he wants to do the angiogram first to be sure echos are correct. If echos are confirmed surgery will likely be scheduled within 3 months. I am a bit nervous still with everything. I think once I get some sort of firm answer I will feel better. All this uncertainty is driving me nuts. My valve area on echo is .97 and I have symptoms, but doc is not sure all symptoms are from my heart. So I guess one step at a time.

Has anyone found that their cath turned out with better results than their echo and they ended up waiting a while for surgery? Echo's are showing progression of stenosis is increasing more rapidly and my valve diameter is reducing at a rate of about 10% per month, so this makes me very nervous.

Thanks for the support.
Lori


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BAV - .097 - awaiting surgery.

 

[deano89]

my cath showed my pulmonary pressure as normal the echo had shown it to be high .but they still recommend surgery before any damage is done but are not rushing now so it did give me breathing space while the roller coaster slows for a while!

 

[Mentu]

Last November, My Cardio sent me to the Cath Lab for a better reading of the pressures and imaging of the valve. The result is that it showed the pressure gradient was less than that suggested by the echocardiogram and the valve portal a little wider. As the result he suggested that instead of surgery a monitored exercise program might be helpful. I began the program in January and finished in April. Some of the "symptoms" were being caused by my just being in poor physical condition and those went away after a few weeks. This summer I began experiencing AVS symptoms so we are now discussing surgery in about three months. For the moment I am living with the familiar list: palpitations, shortness of breath & dizziness. It sounds as though we may be on a similar schedule.

 

[sheridan07]

My Heart cath showed alot better than my echo, but then they did a tee on me. The tee showed the same results as the echo. I had ohs in feb of this year and my aortic valve was alot worse then expected of the tests. The Doctor told me that, he didn't think I had six months if I didn't have the surgery. I hope you well, and ask questions. I did and it saved me.

 

[skeptic49]

Glad the meeting with your new cardio went well. The uncertainty thing is a real pain. I hope you get things resolved soon.

Best wishes,

Jim

 

[Lorimacm]

Still don't have this scheduled yet. Trouble verifying insurance for the hospital. The office still said we should be able to schedule within the next few weeks no problem.

Thanks all for your experiences.

 

[TXWildflower]

Yes, I just had a heart cath on Friday and it showed my valve area at 1 cm2 where the echo at 6 weeks earlier showed .85cm. Now i'm on month to month monitoring while I try to lose some weight. Hard to plan much in your life with this hanging over you I know. All you can do is just keep hanging though....Best of lulck

 

[ALCapshaw2]

TransThoracic Echo Cardiograms TTE (i.e. outside the chest) are a good Non-Invasive Diagnostic Tool to see if there is something wrong in there. The Accuracy depends highly on the skill of the technician (and the quality of the equipment).

A TransEsophageal Echocardiogram TEE (transducer placed down your esophagus behind your heart) gives better images and is generally more accurate.

A Heart Catheterization / Angiogram allows for direct measurement of the pressures in each chamber and across each valve but is of course more invasive.

Surgeons will want a Left AND Right Heart Cath before surgery to check for signs of Coronary Artery Disease (so they can bypass blockages 'while they are in there') and to assess your Pulmonary Function (via the Right Heart Cath). IF you get a cath, it would be good to have BOTH sides examined at once (so you don't have to repeat the test to get the Pulmonary data for the surgeon).

Many Surgeons (and Cardiologists) use 0.8 sq cm as their 'trigger' for recommending surgery. Symptoms are also considered along with the 'numbers'.

IF the numbers differ between different tests and the more accurate tests show Less Severe Stenosis, it is not uncommon to 'wait and watch' with Echos scheduled every 6 months. IF symptoms worsen, then another Echo would likely be called for.

One of our Famous Sayings goes:
"The Worse Things Get, the Faster they get Worse"
so pay attention to symptoms and have regular checkups.

"Nervousness" is par for the course.
We've ALL had to face our fears and take that "Leap of Faith".

The Good News is that First Time Surgeries have an extremely High Success Rate (1% morbidity, 1% mortality nationally vs. almost certain demise if left untreated for a few years).

We're here when you need us.

'AL Capshaw'

 

[Lorimacm]

Thanks Al for all the great info. Yes, he is doing left and right - I am scheduled for next thursday. My surgeon tells me to expect surgery soon but couldn't elaborate on what "soon" means, although if cath does not reveal results to indicate surgery in next 3 months he wants to check again in 6 months. It just seems a long time to wait with the very fast progression on my echos (about 10% per month now). I guess we will wait and see - I'm trying not to stress.

Thanks again!

 

[Freddie]

In the mean time while you wait, why don't you make some meals that can be frozen? It will keep you busy until you hear more news. And if things get delayed you can always use an already prepared meal.
Just a thought.

Best Wishes.